'Ocean's 8': A Heist Hit by (and for) Grownups

But there’s another way to look at Ocean's 8: it's a grownup movie whose success won't be immediately apparent, the way one can predict a Star Wars film's ultimate grosses based on how many kids throng to it on opening night. An AARP study of filmgoer habits reveals that only 8 percent of viewers over 50 attend movies on opening weekend. They're discerning moviegoers, 50 percent more likely to read newspaper reviews than 18- to 34-year-olds. Some 42 percent of grownups wait two weeks to see a new film. And Ocean's 8 is geared to the grownup viewer. As Hollywood trade magazine Variety notes, "Ocean's 8's older target audience doesn't always rush to theaters on opening weekend. Its success will likely rely on playability stemming heavily from reviews and word of mouth."

Word of mouth is apt to be good, partly thanks to Bullock, 53, as the criminal ringleader Debbie Ocean (sister of Clooney's Danny). Still girlish, with a Clooneyesque (or Sinatraesque) gravitas, she is often Hollywood's best-paid actress. Her character Debbie, craving a $16 million haul, plans to grab the Cartier diamond necklace she cons a famous movie star (Anne Hathaway) into wearing to the Met bash.

From left: Sandra Bullock as Debbie Ocean, Cate Blanchett as Lou, Sarah Paulson as Tammy, Rihanna as Nine Ball, Helena Bonham Carter as Rose, Mindy Kaling as Amita and Awkwafina as Constance in “Ocean's 8.”

Rich in comic talent and convincing as the alpha female on the scene, Bullock skillfully trades rapid-fire repartee with Blanchett, 49, and Bonham Carter, 52, who has a ball playing a washed-up Irish fashionista who owes the IRS a zillion. In a nod to the power of the grownup demographic, Marlo Thomas, 80, Elizabeth Ashley, 78, and Dana Ivey, 76, get nice cameo roles. Unlike most movies, which relegate grownups to secondary or tertiary roles, Ocean's 8 treats them as full partners to the youngsters who help execute the clockwork plot. It's almost as if the film regards grownups as actual people, the way they were before age 50.

Hathaway is hilarious as the narcissistic, Bambi-eyed star, who may not be quite as dim as we think. Richard Armitage (The Hobbit) has a nice token male role as Hathaway’s date to the Met Gala; he’s also the ex who sent Debbie Ocean to prison, which he'll regret. James Corden makes the most of a brief role as the insurance investigator on Debbie's twisty trail.

One of the Ocean's gang triumphantly says, "Somewhere out there is an 8-year-old girl who wants to be a criminal. This is for her!" Actually, this comic romp is for everybody.